Paulini Curuenavuli back in court over driving while licence suspended charge

Singer and actor Paulini Curuenavuli, who shot to fame after appearing on the first season of Australian Idol is in trouble with the law over yet another driving charge. Here’s what happened.

Paulini Curuenavuli rehearsing for The Bodyguard.

Paulini Curuenavuli has yet again been in trouble with the law.

The singer and actor is listed to appear at Sutherland Local Court on November 28 after being caught driving a motor vehicle “while licence suspended”.

It is the latest development in the former Australian Idol contestant’s chequered driving history and comes seven years after being handed a six month suspended jail sentence when she was caught bribing a government employee to obtain a fake driver’s licence.

Former Australian Idol contestant Paulini Curuenavuli photographed leaving Parramatta District Court on 2nd February 2018. Pauline was appealing her conviction to bribing a Roads and Maritime Services employee for an unrestricted driver's licence, but instead got a dressing down from the judge. Picture: Julian Andrews

Curuenavuli and her management would not comment when contacted, although it is understood she was shocked to learn her licence was suspended when pulled over by police.

The 41-year-old of course placed fourth on the inaugural season of Australian Idol in 2003.

Since then she has released music solo and as part of The Young Divas, as well as touring with musical theatre productions.

She has also appeared on reality TV shows ranging from Dancing With The Stars to The Masked Singer Australia, I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! and Celebrity Overhaul.

In December 2017, Curuenavuli pleaded guilty to bribing an RMS employee $850 for a fake licence which allowed her to drive illegally on NSW roads for a year.

At the time, she had racked up 11 driving offences despite having ever only held a learner driver’s licence.

In 2017, the court heard Curuenavuli hoped to obtain her full driver’s licence before she was sentenced for her corruption charge – despite having been caught three times driving on her L-plates without being accompanied by a qualified driver.

Paulini on Dancing With The Stars.

Court documents at the time also revealed she had been caught speeding twice, not displaying her L-plates three times and driving on a cancelled licence since she was first issued with a learner’s licence in 2002.

In a 2019 Stellar interview in The Sunday Telegraph, Curuenavuli said she had feared losing work over the bribery charge.

“To be honest, I thought people would not want to work with me,” she said. “Every time I would get in front of a crowd, all I could think about was how people would judge me. I learnt a massive lesson,” she says. “Just do it right! One thing I have to remember is that even though no-one wants to be an example like this, if you are going to be in the public eye, everyone is looking — and the right thing is always the thing you must do. I definitely think twice now about my actions because even though I don’t feel like a role model, my nieces and nephews are watching and I don’t want them to ever think, ‘Oh if you did wrong, it’s OK.’ Before I went with the easiest option, now I won’t.”

Curuenavuli meanwhile is currently playing shows for her Paulini Sings The American Divas concerts, paying tribute to the likes of Whitney Houston, Tina Turner, Aretha Franklin and Donna Summer. Her next gig is scheduled for the Hayden Orpheum on November 18.